Years Go By
by Kurenai Sakeme
Summary: Secrets never last long, do they? And...BOTAN AND KEIKO ARE PREGNANT? Now the lucky guys get to put up with moodswings, keen senses, and a doctor with a messedup name! HxB YusxKei ShizxKur implied TouyaxYuki and KoenxAyame COMPLETE
1. Chapter One

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH. sniff

WARNING: This chapter was co-written by KageYoukai. (For this chapter only)

A/N: this takes place a few months after the letter from "Silent All These Years." was sent.

Chapter One 1/2

The News

Botan and all the normal peopleses (Kurama, Yusuke, Keiko, etc. etc…) except Hiei were gathered at Genkai's temple. Botan had called them there with "important news."

"Everyone, I have an announcement to make!" she said happily. "I'm pregnant!"

She was then bombarded by thousands of, "WHO'S THE FATHER"'s and a single, "Congratulations" from the ever-polite Keiko. (Not even Kurama said congrats. He was too busy battling….himself.)

"Oh my God, Yoko, why didn't you tell me?!" screamed Kurama in the _safety_ of his own mind.

"What did I do?" asked a confused Yoko.

"What did you do?! What did you do?! You know what you did!!"

"Okay, okay! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to fool around with your imaginary friend, it just…happened."

"Oh, God."

Kurama promptly passed out, much to the confusion of the others. Botan took advantage of the chaos and…ran off.

'Hm…Who could it be…?' Yusuke thought. _'Could it be…' _"Koenma, you dirty bastard!" Yusuke muttered under his breath.

"What was that, Yusuke?" asked Koenma, poofing behind him.

"What? Nothing! Nothing at all! I know nothing!" Yusuke said, a little too fast.

"I can agree with that…" Koenma muttered, poofing away.

Later…

Yusuke ran up to Botan to confront her about his coughfalse discovery.

"Botan!" he called.

"What is it Yusuke?" Botan asked dryly.

"I know!"

"…Huh?"

"I know who it is!" Yusuke insisted.

"Oh, God you do?!" Botan yelled. "You-you haven't _told _anyone right…?"

"…Noooooooooooooooooo…"

FLASHBACK…

"Psst! It's Koenma!" Yusuke whispered to people he didn't even know.

END FLASHBACK…

"Well, I must say, I didn't realize you were interested in _older_ men," said Yusuke.

"Really? I never did know how old he was…" Botan said. "I always thought he was younger. But…"

"Wait a second…" Yusuke thought for a moment. "For God's sake he's this tall! Don't you know who I'm talking about?!" Yusuke put his hand about a foot off the ground.

"Don't you think that's exaggerating it a little bit?"

"Wait…." he thought for another second. "Is it Koenma?"

"GOD NO YOU SICK, SICK PERSON!!" she whacked him as hard as she could with the oar.

"Okay, okay, sorry, I was wrong." He started to walk off. _'Wait…'_ He stopped some poor, random victim and whispered into his ear, "Pssst, it's Kurama!!"

"I HEARD THAT!!" Botan screamed. She started to chase after him, but then an anonymously thrown rock hit Yusuke in the head and he passed out. "Thanks!" she yelled into a nearby tree as she hit Yusuke numerous times.

SOMEWHERE ELSE…

"So," said Kurama, filling Hiei in on the news. Little did he know then, Hiei knew a lot more than everyone else. "Pretty crazy about Botan, huh?"

"Uh….Yeah…Uh huh…"

"Who do you think the father is?"

"How do you expect me to know?!?!?!" Hiei said a little too quickly, and a little to loudly.

"I didn't, I just---Wait, you can read minds right? You could find out!" Kurama said.

"Hn…"

"Will you?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because……I find it rude….." Hiei mumbled, obviously lying. Kurama fell over, anime-style.

"Since when did you---OH! Oh……………….." Kurama's face suddenly looked disgusted, horrified, and shocked all at the same time. "I-I-I-I-I………………………….Have...To…Go……..Do…that…thing….that…I'm…suppose…to…do…" Kurama ran away. Hiei stood, staring blankly for a moment before vanishing.

Later…

Yusuke was walking through the town with a heavily bandaged head, trying to think of who the father could be.

'Could it be…AHH! GASP!! Kuwabara?! Oh, my God, bad images be GONE!!' Yusuke began to whack himself in the head repeatedly. "Ow..ow. Ow..OW!!"

So, the freaked out Yusuke just happened to come across a very freaked out Kurama who was currently running away from his house.

Upon seeing each other, they both stopped what ever they were doing and yelled, "I KNOW WHO IT IS!" in unison, causing innocent passer-bys to stop and stare.

"Oh, my God isn't it just plain messed up?!" exclaimed Yusuke.

"Well I guess it _does_ sort of make sense. I mean, opposites _do _attract sometimes, but…I never would have thought…." Kurama trailed off.

"Yeah, it just came to me after a good beating from Botan." he pointed to the bandages. "Never get on her bad side…"

"Maybe they're not as opposite as we thought, or maybe he's just rubbing off on her…"

"What? Kuwabara is never dangerous!"

Kurama got that same look as he had had before, with some added confusion and a 'you-sick-disgusting-pervert' look.

"What? Am I wrong? TELL ME!!" screamed Yusuke.

Kurama bashed his head into the wall a few times, and then turned back to Yusuke. "It's…Hiei!"

"NO!!! I NEVER WOULD HAVE GUESSED! MY NEXT GUESS WAS MYSELF!! I _did_ get pretty drunk at that party…Anyway, what do we do now?"

"Tell people!" Kurama had miraculously transformed into Yoko, causing the people to run away screaming, "IT'S THE APOCALYPSE!!!"

Anyway…Later…

All of the peopleses were gathered (again) at Genkai's temple. Everyone except Hiei and Botan, that is. They were off doing who-knows-what somewhere else. (Personally, I don't _want_ to know. But, being the authoress, I am DOOMED to know.)

"Okay everybody, we know who the father is!" declared Yoko.

"Yep!" Yelled Yusuke.

They were then hit by a torrent of, "WHO IS IT?"'s and had to wait for the noise to die down.

"Now that everyone has kindly shut up." said Yoko dryly. "It's time to announce that the father of Botan's kid is…"

"WHOISITWHOISITWHOISIT??!"

"PEOPLE SHUT UP!!!" Yelled Yusuke. "Or we won't tell." Instant silence. "That's better."

"Okay, so the father is…" said Yoko.

"HIEI!" They both yelled. (Obviously, they had it planned out.)

"GASP" replied the audience.

"WHY DIDN'T ANYONE TELL ME BOTAN WAS HAVING A BABY? AND WITH _HIEI_ OF ALL PEOPLE?!"

"Oh look, he's jealous!" jeered Keiko.

"How cute! -" said Yukina.

Koenma ignored them, just poofed away in the middle of a laughing riot. _'I'll give them a piece of MY mind!'_

Somewhere else………

"Do they know anything?" Hiei asked.

"They haven't got a clue," said Botan.

Satisfied, Hiei leaned in to share a passionate kiss with Botan….right when Koenma poofed in.

There, didja like it? I'll update if I get reviews for it!!


	2. Um, The Nameless Chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't mean to state the obvious, but I don't want to be sued for a violation of copyright laws. I don't own YYH.

A/N: again, for those of us you who didn't see the also note on the last chapter, this takes place a few months after Botan sends Hiei the letter in "Silent All These Years." Oh, and Yusuke and Keiko are married. (An add-on, this is a few years after the end of the series, so we'll just say Keiko and Yusuke are 22.)

Chapter Two

So, as we left off, Hiei was leaning in to share a long, passionate kiss with Botan when Koenma poofed in.

"OHMIDADDY!!" He screamed. "GET A _ROOM!_"

They both pulled back and Botan gave him a "you're-an-idiot" look. "Er, Koenma, this IS our room. Remember, I moved out of Reikai and told you if you ever came to my apartment, I'd tell your 'dear old dad' what you REALLY do on your little 'research trips?'"

Koenma pondered this for a moment.

FLASHBACK KOENMA

"So Father, I wanted to ask your permission to descend to Ningenkai for a little..._research_ trip. You know, to study the recent¼ um¼ supernatural happenings." Koenma was standing before Enma, with the cowering next to him, as usual.

"Sure, whatever, enjoy yourself. Now get out, I have a splitting headache. Bring either Botan or Ayame with you, also." replied Enma grumpily.

"How about George? He needs to get out more."

"Fine, as long as you disguise him."

TWO DAYS LATER (In the flashback)

"George, this is the life!" declared Koenma. He and George were lounging on a beach in Ningenkai. Koenma had a cocktail in his hand and was surrounded by a bunch of women.

"George happy!"

END FLASHBACK

"No, please don't! Father would never let me leave Reikai again!" wailed Koenma.

"Oh, I won't tell." said Botan evilly. "As long as _you_ don't tell anyone about _us_."

"You mean you don't know that _everyone_ knows?" Koenma asked, dumbfounded.

"What do you mean?" questioned Hiei. "Who told you?"

"Yoko and Yusuke. Made a point of it, too. Gathered everyone together and told them." He sighed. "You could do so much better Botan, and I must admit I thought a lot higher of you."

Botan laughed. "I assume I could have done better by going out with _you?_" Hiei smirked.

"Well¼ yes." he said.

"Well, four words." said Botan slowly. She leaned toward Koenma and screamed into his ear, "GET OVER IT BABY!"

Koenma did the anime-fall and then came back up. "What'd you do that for?!"

"To deflate your pompous head." she said dryly. "You _know_ Ayame likes you. Try her. I'm already taken." she pulled back her collar to reveal two little holes.

"YOU LET HIM _BITE_ YOU!? YOU DON'T KNOW WHERE HE'S BEEN! WHAT IF HE HAS RABIES OR SOMETHING!?"

"Rabies!?" Hiei stood. "I'll show you rabies!"

"Hiei, sit down, and Koenma, lighten up. I'd understand if you said that if I let _Yoko_ bite me, but I didn't. And what did you expect, he's the father of my unborn child, who, F.Y.I. You are probably scarring for life. Heaven knows your annoying wailing would scare _me_ if I was a baby."

"Botan, you're not acting like yourself. _You don't use big words!_ Remember? Man, Hiei has rubbed off on you more than I thought."

"I didn't use any big words!" Botan protested.

"Bigger words than normal. Anyway, I'm almost the ruler of everything! I don't have to put up with this! I'm going home!" and with that Koenma poofed away, scowling.

"He's so annoying." sighed Botan as she rose from the bed. "I'll start dinner." She walked out of their tiny bedroom into the kitchen.

Once she was gone, Hiei lunged for the nightstand, producing a Ho-Ho and an energy bar. _"Always have to have a backup plan. I was hoping she'd just give up and order Chinese tonight¼ " _Hiei thought back to the "meatloaf" she'd "made" earlier that week. It looked like an oversized piece of charcoal served with blackened rice. How, exactly, she'd screwed up rice, Hiei was unsure, but she had.

The next day...

Hiei and Botan were getting ready to go to the hospital for Botan's check-up.

"Should we tell anyone where we're going to be?" asked Botan.

"Nah, it won't matter." replied Hiei warily. He wasn't exactly looking forward to this. "Hey, do I really _have_ to go?" He asked.

"Yes!" replied Botan. "It's not like _I_ want to go either! You're supposed to come for moral support, so let's just pretend we're a normal Ningen for a couple of hours."

Hiei sighed. "Fine."

At this very moment, Yusuke and Keiko were getting ready for _their_ check-up!

"When are we going to tell the others you're pregnant?" asked Yusuke. "We don't really have to keep it secret anymore, because of Botan."

"Yusuke!" she looked over to him. "I'll tell everyone when I'm good and ready!" she grabbed her purse. "Now let's go."

"Do I have to?" moaned Yusuke, sounding remarkably like a little kid.

"Yes. For moral support. I don't like this either." she grabbed his arm and dragged him out the door.

At the hospital, (Botan and Hiei lived just around the corner, so they got there first.) Botan and Hiei sat in the waiting room when a little kid came up to them and randomly poked Hiei.

Botan smiled and said, "It looks like he likes you, Hiei."

Hiei clenched his teeth. "_Please_ tell me ours won't be like this. _Please._"

"Well, if you have anything to do with it, probably not."

"Our kid with get their first sharp, pointy object the _minute_ we get home with it." said Hiei. "To prevent it from being one of the annoying ones that watches shows on public T.V. And if it stabs one of us, it's a good thing." he smirked as Botan whacked him playfully on the head.

"_Keeeiiikoo!!_" came Yusuke's voice from down the hall. "I don't want to come in!"

"Hide!" whispered Botan as she threw a magazine at Hiei and covered her face with a different one.

"Why did you give me _this_ one?!" spat Hiei. It was one of those teen magazines with all the fashion crap. "People are going to think I'm gay!"

"Shut-up!"

A nurse appeared by the door. "Um, could we have¼ Hiei and Botan and Keiko and Yusuke?"

Hiei and Botan turned bright red as they slowly trudged toward the door with Keiko and Yusuke following in disbelief. They were all led into a hallway, and then a doctor came out of a door on the left.

"Okay, Keiko and Yusuke over there," he pointed to a door. "And Hiei and Botan over there." he pointed to a different one.

About an hour later...

Botan and Keiko left their separate rooms looking quite relieved it wasn't as bad as they had thought, while Yusuke and Hiei walked with small, slow steps. Both of their mouths were open and they were obviously a bit horrified at the marvels of pregnancy.

"Why didn't you tell me you were pregnant, Keiko?" asked Botan as they left the hospital.

"I don't know¼ .I guess I didn't think anyone would understand." replied Keiko.

"Why wouldn't anyone understand? You two have been married for a year. Me and Hiei aren't even really _formally_ married yet."

"I don't know¼ " She trailed off.

"I don't trust that doctor." cut in Yusuke, who had finally gotten his jaw off the ground. "I mean, his name is Bebi-kira! You know what that means, right!?"

"I don't trust him, either." said Hiei dryly.

"Guys, lighten up, I'm sure he's very insecure about his name." said Botan.

Yusuke laughed. "I'm sure."

**End Chapter 2**

Okay, The doctor's last name comes from the Japanese words "bebi-" and "kira-". Anyone who tells me what it means through a review gets an one-dimensional sundae!!

Peace.


	3. The PoorlyWritten Chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH. I wish I did. But I don't. So don't sue me Yoshihiro Togashi!! Please!!!

Okay people, I decided to write a chapter for almost every month. Since Botan and Keiko have been pregnant for around a month, so we're starting at month 2!

A/N: this takes place a few months after the letter in "Silent All These Years." was sent. (A few years after the end of the series. Keiko and Yusuke are 22.)

Month Two

"During month two, you may experience above-average moodiness and mild morning sickness." read Botan. She was sitting on the couch reading one of those pregnancy books. "What a load of crap. I feel just fine."

"Mm Hm." said Hiei.

"Why don't you every just say 'Yes!'?" She screamed, suddenly hysterical. She got up, ran for her room and shut the door behind her.

"What was that?" thought Hiei.

--------------------------

At this very moment, Keiko was also throwing a temper tantrum.

"Yusuke, you can't go to Makai at a time like this!" cried Keiko.

"Come on Keiko, I have to!" protested Yusuke.

"If you _love_ me and our unborn child you will!"

"Keiko, it's an F-class demon hiding at the edge of the barrier. It'll take me a half an hour, tops."

"If it's so easy make Kurama do it!"

"Fine, whatever!"

Yusuke called Kurama and explained his predicament. Kurama laughed and said he'd do it, wondering what was happening to poor Hiei.

Later that night…

Hiei walked into his and Botan's room and fell sideways onto the bed, obviously exhausted from being forced to clean the house to make it up to Botan.

"Ahem." said Botan. "Who said you were sleeping in here?" she asked grumpily as she pointed to a thin blanket sitting on the floor. "Couch. Go."

Hiei sighed and rolled off of the bed, landing with a thunk. "Ow." he said. Botan didn't seem to care. He grabbed the blanket and headed for the door, stopping in the doorway. "Can I at least have a pillo-"

"HERE!" she yelled, throwing it at him with all her strength.

"Okay, I'm leaving…"

-------------------------------------

When Yusuke came home from work the next day. (An unknown place that shall not be named in this fic…I don't even know where…) Keiko was in the room they had set aside for a nursery and was painting it…pink!

"Um…Keiko." he asked steadily. "Why are you painting the nursery when we don't even know the sex of the baby?"

"Because I just _know_ it will be a girl." said Keiko, patting her stomach. "Mother's intuition!"

"Well…what if your intuition is wrong? If _I_ were a newborn boy I wouldn't want a girl's room."

"Why don't you ever believe in me?" wailed Keiko, jumping down from the step stool she was on. She slapped Yusuke and then ran from the room, crying.

"Keiko!"

----------------------------------------

Hiiiieiiii!" called Botan. "C'mere!"

Hiei rolled off the couch, as it was 9:15 in the morning. "What is it…?" He replied groggily.

"JUST COME HERE!" she screamed. Hiei jumped and obliged.

Botan was standing outside the bathroom pointing to a pile of puke on the floor. "I woke up nauseous and…missed, I guess you could say." she said softly. "And pregnant woman have keener senses than normal, so I can't even get near enough to clean it."

"Are you asking me to clean it up?" asked Hiei.

"Yep, pretty much." she said happily. "Thanks!"

Five minutes later…

Hiei walked into the bathroom with a mop, giant rubber gloves, and disinfectant. A red bandanna was tied around his mouth and nose. He cleaned it up. (Almost puking himself) and left the bathroom declaring, "That was disgusting!"

"Are you saying that _I'm_ disgusting?!" Cried Botan from the end of the hall.

"No, that's not what I-"

"Go!" she screamed. "OUT!"

Hiei grudgingly obliged.

Later…

Hiei and Yusuke were sitting in the park discussing the most recent developments.

"She freaks out on me whenever I open my mouth." said Hiei.

"Your answer is simple." Yusuke laughed. "Chocolate!"

"'Chocolate?'" Hiei asked. "What do you mean?"

"Just go to the store, buy some chocolate and give it to Botan." He stood. "Well, I have to go." He walked off and Hiei went off in search of chocolate.

Even later…

Hiei knocked on his own door, waiting for Botan to answer.

The door opened. "What do you want?" She asked coldly. Hiei pulled the chocolate from behind his back. "I'm sorry." he said, although he wasn't sure what he was sorry for.

"Oh Hiei!" she grabbed the chocolate and kissed him.

"Ah, the wonders of chocolate…"

------------------------------------------------

Okay everybody. I kinda slacked off on this chapter, I was planning to revise it and never did. '' I hope you liked it anyway. Two issues:

One, I'm sorry if this chapter looks screwy to you, several people have told me this and I'm trying to fix it.

Two, the doctor's name (Bebi-kiraa) means Baby killer! Congratulations if you got it! Um...Here's a sundae! **hands you a sundae **Enjoy!


	4. The Chapter After That!

Disclaimer: I do not, have never, and never will own YYH.

The idea for this chapter came from Kage Youkai. (Don't hurt me.)

Author's Note: The last chappie sucked. No way around it. But hey, every story needs a low point, right? RIGHT!? Anyway, I'll try and make this extra-funny to make it up to you, the much cherished reader and (hopefully) reviewer. (I know I skipped a month. Even numbers are better!)

Chapter Four

"In the fourth month, the mother's mood swings will have settled down and the morning sickness will all but stop, however, the mother may become distressed as she will most likely begin to gain weight."

Botan and Hiei were sitting in the living room of their little apartment, talking about random things when a rather…_interesting_ topic came up.

"Hiei," said Botan. "I signed us up for a parenting class with Yusuke and Keiko."

"You _what?_" asked Hiei. "Only an idiot would need someone to tell them how to raise their kid."

"Hiei, this is the kind of thing we're supposed to do. The hospital suggested it, and hey, we've never been parents before. Unless there's something you want to tell me…"

"What? No!" yelled Hiei with a horrified expression. "But still…!"

"Come on Hiei. It's on Thursday and I don't care whether or not you want to go, you are. And besides, Yusuke will be there. I'm sure he's just as happy about this as you are."

"You expect the simple fact that the _detective_ will be able to ease the pain of some brainless Ningen telling me I'm a violent parent that won't be able to provide a stable home for my unborn child?"

"Actually, that's just what I was about to mention. You might want to start toning down the violence and maybe…get a job…?"

"…"

On Thursday…

"C'mon Keiko! Why do we have to go to this?" moaned Yusuke as he drove himself and Keiko to the class.

"Because Yusuke, we can't rely on books to tell us everything about raising a kid…or at least _you_ can't." replied Keiko, tapping her nails impatiently on the armrest.

"What's that supposed to mean?! I _did_ graduate high school, remember?"

"Yeah, with 5 C's, 2 D's, a B, and a tardy record of 97 days. Plus, I ended up doing most of your makeup work."

"Well I'm sorry school has to take a backseat when there ARE EVIL PEOPLE TRYING TO DESTROY NINGENKAI!!" said Yusuke, annoyed. He found a parking spot just outside the door.

"Oh look, there's Hiei and Botan now." commented Keiko. "Let's go meet them at the doors." 

"Hey look, it's Keiko and Yusuke's car." said Botan as she pointed at it. She and Hiei, having no car, walked almost everywhere.

"Yippee." said Hiei sarcastically.

"Be nice. Now we're going to go in there, act like you're not a sociopath fire demon, and I'll pretend I'm not the Grim Reaper, and we'll just be a happy expecting couple learning how to take care of a baby." By this time, they had reached the doors of the building where the class was supposed to be. Keiko waved at them.

"Hey there!" she said happily.

"Hi!" replied Botan, acting like her normal, bubbly self. She opened the door and held it for everyone, laughing to herself at the rather somber looking guys.

The classroom they had been assigned was already filled with a bunch of couples with life-sized baby dolls. At the front of the classroom was an old lady who probably had had more children that the Little Old Lady Who Lived in a Shoe, judging by the rolls of skin bulging out over her pants. (Why is it that most old people insist on wearing tight shirts, especially when they've got a lot of flab?)

"Okay everyone!" she yelled, calling the class to order. "It looks like everyone is here, so let's take attendance!" she pulled out a sheet and started calling names and asking for due dates.

"Botan, what's our due date?" asked Hiei.

"I was about to ask you the same thing."

"Oh shit."

"Okay, let's see…Keiko and Yusuke?"

"Here!" called Keiko. "Last name is Urameshi, and the due date is July 12."

"And now…Hiei and Botan…Um, there isn't a last name here…" she wore a puzzled expression.

"Here." said Botan.

"And your last name and due date?" 

"Um…July 11...and…" She shot Hiei a look. "The last name is…Idunno…?"

"July 11, last name, Idunno?"

"Yeah."

"Uh huh…" she said with an 'ooookay,' expression. She glanced back at her list and continued to take attendance. After a few more minutes, she said, "Well, that's done. Now, show me how you would pick up the dolls in front of you."

Yusuke looked down at the doll. "Er, Keiko, it's _staring_ at me."

Keiko picked up her doll and sighed. "Yusuke, just pick the thing up. Who cares if it's staring."

"It's _creepy_." he protested, but he picked the doll up anyway.

Botan grabbed hers and looked over to Hiei, who was staring at the doll with a blank expression.

"Hiei, pick it up! She's almost here." hissed Botan.

"…" Hiei picked it up and just stared at it. "What _is_ this thing?"

"It's a doll." replied Botan simply.

"No, no, no, no, no!" exclaimed the old lady teacher-person, who had magically appeared behind them. "You're not supporting the head and neck!" she snatched Hiei's doll away and cradled it in her own arms, carefully holding the head and neck with one hand and using her other to support the body. "You hold it like this. I even have a song to help you remember the proper way to hold a baby, if you like!"

"Er…no thanks." said Botan with a raised brow. The teacher turned around to face her.

"Are you his wife?"

"No, but we live together."

"Not a very stable home environment." tsked the teacher. "You may want to consider marrying before the child is born."

"We don't plan on it."

"You should." persisted the teacher.

"Look, it's up to us whether or not we get married!" Botan exclaimed, a bit flustered.

"Jeez, I was just saying… Oh well." She moved on, not bothering to correct the way Botan was handling the doll. She just walked off muttering, "Teen pregnancies are getting _way_ too out of hand…"

"Teen pregnancies?" said Botan to no one in particular. Hiei answered.

"Just how old are you?"

"Way past my teenage years."

"That's what I thought."

"Head and neck, Head and neck, don't forget the head and neck!"

"What the…?!" Botan looked over to Keiko and Yusuke, who were both looking up at the teacher with strange expressions as she sang the 'Head and Neck,' song to Yusuke.

"And that's how ya hold the…BA-BYYYY!" The teacher smiled. "Do you want to hear it again?"

"God n-" started Yusuke.

"Um, no thank you…" said Keiko with a sweat drop.

"Oh…" the teacher seemed disappointed. She moved on to the next couple.

"That really wasn't much of a song." commented Hiei.

"It was more her screeching words that don't rhyme to a tune with no pattern." added Yusuke. Keiko slapped him lightly in the arm. 

"Manners, Yusuke!"

"How was that unmannerly?"

"I think you owe the teacher a put-up."

"A what?!" asked Hiei and Botan in unison.

"A put-up." said Keiko simply. "It's the opposite of a put-down. Every time you say something mean to or about someone, you owe them a put-up to make up to the put-down. It's a teaching tool I learned in school the other day. Remember? I'm going to be a kindergarten teacher!"

"I wonder how many 'put-ups' I owe the baka…" muttered Hiei.

"Please look up here!" called the teacher from the front of the room. "Now that we have perfected how you hold the child, let's see how you change them! These are new, high-tech dolls, so I want you all to turn your doll over, open the back of the shirt, and press the red button." She waited for everyone to do so. "Now your baby has a soiled diaper!" she exclaimed-like it was a good thing-once everyone was done. "I'll be passing out diapers momentarily." she grabbed a package of diapers from a shelf on the wall and started to pass them out from the front of the room working her way back. Of course, Hiei, Botan, Keiko, and Yusuke were in the back.

"So these dolls can _shit_ themselves?" asked Yusuke. "Just when you think you've seen it all…"

"It _is_ a bit odd…" agreed Botan. Hiei stayed silent.

"Well hey, it will only better prepare us!" commented Keiko cheerfully.

"You're _happy_ that dolls can shit themselves?" asked Yusuke. "God woman, you're insane."

"Hey! You owe me a put-up!"

Yusuke sighed and thought for a moment. "Um…you have nice hair?"

"You used that one last week!"

"Nice shirt?"

"There we go." Keiko sat back on her heels, satisfied.

"Here's your diapers." said the teacher, dropping two before each couple. "I assume you know what to do." she turned on her heel and walked away.

"I think she hates us now." said Hiei, finally saying something.

"Probably. At least there's only five minutes left." said Botan as she undid the buttons on her doll's onesie1. Hiei mimicked her. Next, Botan undid the little Vel-cro tabs on the diaper to reveal…

"Ew!" she exclaimed. "It _does_ soil itself!" As Hiei undid the little tabs, he also saw the little brown mark in the diaper.

"Only to better prepare us!" reminded Keiko as she pulled the diaper off.

"Keiko, shut up." said Yusuke bluntly, copying her.

"Yusuke, give me another put-up!"

"Nice pants."

Hiei rolled his eyes and then looked back to the task at hand. Botan had found some baby wipes in between the diapers and was wiping away the remains of the dolls…._'discharge' _Hiei did the same, but then stopped and sat back on his heels reproachfully.

"Hiei, what are you doing?"

"This is moronic! Why are we even here?"

"You know very well why!" her face was reddening from embarrassment and was twisting itself into that flustered look it always got when they fought. "Now please, don't do this here! Not when there are others around!"

"Why does it matter who's here?!"

"Hiei!"

Hiei simply crossed his arms and shot her a 'give it up,' look. She was used to that look, so she opened her mouth to yell at him, but before she uttered a sound…

"Everyone, that's it for today's lesson! See you next Thursday!"

Botan stood. "Let's go." She turned on her heel and started to walk off.

"I told you you could have done better!" Keiko called after her, but Botan ignored her. Yusuke simply laughed at Hiei.

"Now look what you've done! Remember Hiei, you have to sleep in the same room as her tonight! Might wanna patch things up!" Hiei glared at Yusuke for a moment before walking off after Botan.

**Later….**

"Hiei, why do you pull shit like that!" yelled Botan. She and Hiei were back home, in the living room of their apartment, fighting.

"Why do you go behind my back all the time, making plans for us without even _consulting_ me first?!"

"Because I know the answer I'll get! Hn, Hn, Hn, Hn, HN!!!" she screamed. "I am sick and TIRED of that word!"

"I've hardly used it at all lately!"

"It doesn't matter! I know that's what you're thinking!"

"Onna-"

"Don't call me that! I have a name!"

"Botan-"

"You know what? I've had it. You can sleep on the couch tonight. The only reason I'm not turning you to the streets is because for some strange reason, I still love you. Now tomorrow we have an appointment with Dr. Bebi-Kiraa, and you _are_ coming, whether you like it or not!"

"Fine!"

Botan stared at him for a moment, then disappeared into their bedroom, slamming the door.

Hiei sat down on the couch and put his head in his hands. _"Hiei, you bastard! Look what you've done! Now she's madder than you've ever seen her before, and it's because you're such an idiot."_

Botan, after dramatically slamming the door, ran to her bed and jumped onto it, watching her teardrops soak into the comforter. _"He is so IMPOSSIBLE!! God, I have a pretty hard temper to break…it's certainly taken long enough for me to snap…but god…" _She glanced over at the framed letter on Hiei's side of the bed.

"Hiei,

It's me, Botan. I never thought I'd do this, especially crouched in my room with Koenma yelling at me to get to work…"

She grabbed the frame and read the letter twice over, more tears dotting the glass.

"You stupid, stupid girl!" she scolded herself. "You did this to yourself!" she looked down at her stomach, which still had not started to grow. She flopped over onto the bed, her head landing on Hiei's pillow. She inhaled deeply, letting his scent fill her nostrils, and then let it go. She rolled over onto her own pillow, and then cried herself to sleep.

In the living room, Hiei stood and silently crossed the room, leaving the apartment. He knew what he had to do….

**The Next Morning**

"Botan." whispered Hiei. "Botan, wake up."

Botan smiled dreamily. "Hiei…wait, Hiei!" she sat up and rubbed her eyes. She glanced at the clock. "We're late for the appointment."

"Forget the appointment. Come out to the living room."

She swung both legs to the other side of the bed, standing up and realizing she had fallen asleep in her clothes. She followed him into the living room, where thousands of pink, red, and Black Magic roses were arranged all over the place, all connected, all alive as one.

"Took me all night." muttered Hiei. "Of course I have a bit of help from Kurama, but…"

"Shhh." cooed Botan, drawing him into a hug. "I'm sorry."

"Me too."

And they kissed.

Me: That was possibly the longest chapter I have _ever_ written. My fingers hurt. --. Anyway, Bebi-Kiraa means Baby-Killer! Inter-Dimensional sundaes for Nala, Tuathafaerie, and chibikare cuz' she was close! Good job! Anyway, R&R

Actually, one more thing. The dude who flamed me…Gryphonheart/Phlame-Draigen? Yeah, sorry if you didn't like my story, but if you hate HB fics then WHY DID YOU READ IT?! BTW Hiei-Kurama fics are screwed up.


	5. The Don't Fall Off The Cliff Chappie!

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH.

Authoress's Note: Sorry I haven't updated in a while…been busy with my new fic, "The Magic of Insanity." (More reviews for that greatly appreciated!) Well…here's the long awaited update!

Chapter Five

Days went by. Days soon turned to weeks and weeks into months, filled with seemingly endless hospital visits and checkups, hormones and extra pounds. Nurseries were prepared, Botan and Hiei's painted pink and Yusuke and Keiko's repainted blue. (The ultrasound revealed 'mother's intuition' isn't always right.)

All too soon, it was June 9th. The Urameshis were due the 12th, and Botan and Hiei had guessed right at the parenting class, they were due the 11th.

As Botan's pregnancy book had recommended, the ferry girl now carried her hospital bag with her everywhere, and so did Keiko. The bags were stuffed with blankets, money, identification, (in case they went unconscious and their husbands weren't there to help,) clothes for the babies to leave the hospital in, and every other pointless thing they could think to stuff inside. Everything was set.

The night of the 9th, Botan was sitting alone in the new rocking chair she had picked out, looking around the nursery at the delicate pink lace curtains, the dark wood crib and all of the little toys she'd bought, neatly tucked away as though the baby was already born. Tears welled up in her eyes. Hiei stepped into the doorway.

"Are you okay?" he asked, his tone slightly worried as he stepped from the threshold and laid a gentle hand on her shoulder. She brought her hand up to grab it as a tear fell.

"Hiei…I'm scared." she looked up at him. "What if something goes wrong?"

"You shouldn't worry about that. Remember what the doctor said? Stress could inflict an early delivery. And I think we both know you don't need that." his voice was gentle, and he seemed to be acting nicer than normal, as though to comfort her. He moved in front of her and knelt down, keeping her hand in his.

She smiled. "Hiei?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you for being here."

His red eyes softened. "I'm always here."

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While Botan was worrying, Keiko was spazzing.

"Yusuke! Make sure that we have enough formula for when we get him home…and did you ever organize the baby's closet? And do we have enough diapers?!" she was running around frantically, counting and checking anything that pertained to the baby. Throwing open the closet, she let out a yell. "YUSUKE! I TOLD YOU YESTERDAY TO ORGANIZE THIS!" The baby's clothes were in a heap on the floor, tags still on.

"I'm sorry Keiko!" he yelled back from the kitchen. (Probably counting the formula packages, she'd insisted they have 50 when the baby got home.) "I must've forgotten!"

"Well, if you ever _forget_ to dress our baby, I'll kill you!" she bent down and winced as pain seared through her swollen ankles. Just as she reached for a little blue onesie (The little baby outfits that are just one piece,) she felt something cold running down her leg.

She screamed.

Yusuke came running. "What happened?!" he yelled frantically.

"My water just broke! We're early!" she shrieked, trying to straighten back up.

"Aren't you supposed to have contractions first?!"

"Yes!"

"Did you?!"

"No…this isn't going right!" she managed to straighten and leaned against the doorframe of the closet for support. "What do we do?!"

"I don't know!" cried the frantic spirit detective, looking around.

"YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO KNOW!" Keiko screamed. "Go get the baby bag and start the car!"

"Yes, sir!"

"JUST DO IT-hey, did you call me sir?!"

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

THUMP.

Hiei ran to the nursery after hearing something heavy to fall, seeing Botan on the floor, clutching her swollen stomach.

"What happened?"

"We're early!"

"WHAT?!" he crossed the room to her side and knelt beside her. "A-are you sure this is it?!"

"Yes, the other contractions didn't involve my lower half on FIRE!"

"Let's go then…" he slid his arms underneath her, picking her up with ease even with her extra 20-something pounds, heading for the door. Just as they went out, she grabbed the baby bag, Hiei making a run for it as soon as the door was shut.

"You know, most women have the luxury of going to the hospital in a car, and nod being carried by their lightning-fast mate!" she yelled, her voice trembling as they moved.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hiei and Yusuke both burst through the emergency room doors at the same time, both carrying their wives. Both dashed to the receptionist and made it there at the same time, and both exclaimed, "My wife has gone into labor!" at the exact same time. Things were getting pretty freaky.

"Sirs, please wait while I call GYN, who is your doctor?"

"This baby is coming now, onna!" yelled Botan angrily, sounding remakably like Hiei. "Get me a freaking doctor NOW!"

"Miss, I'm afraid you'll have to wait a few moments-"

"This is not going to wait!" screamed Keiko. By now, the entire waiting room was staring oddly at the four at the desk.

"The more you talk, the longer it's gonna take!"

At that moment, Dr. Bebi-Kiraahappened towalk through a door at the other end of the room. "What's all the screaming about?"

"These women are being very rude to me!" cried the receptionist, tears in her eyes. "I'm trying as hard as I can!"

"Bebi-Kiraa, help our wives NOW!" yelled Hiei and Yusuke together.

"You have to sign in-"

"NOW!"

"Oh, alright…"

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Hehheh! Now you have to wait! Just be sure not to fall off of that cliff, you wanna be alive when I update! Review now, please!


	6. The IDon'tWantToGiveAnythingAwaySoRead C...

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH. Please evil lawyer bunnies, don't sue!

Authoress Note: …Enjoy! (By the way, don't bite my head off because this chapter isn't politically correct as far as having a baby goes. First of all, I'm 12 so I've never really had a kid before. Second of all, from what I do know, the woman's water breaks, she goes to the hospital, sits there for four hours, then FINALLY goes into labor. I am NOT going to devote a whole chapter to waiting for four hours to make this story more 'realistic.' Although I want this to be as right as possible, come on! So don't go on a point out all the joys of having a baby I missed in this chapter, lol.)

Chapter Six

The two women were quickly given wheelchairs and taken into their rooms. Since it was the full moon, there were so many women in labor they had to share a room.

"Get this thing OUT OF ME!" screamed Keiko, Yusuke's face contorted in an expression of pain as his knuckles cracked sickeningly under her iron grip.

Botan's eyes were squeezed shut, and a long stream of curses (Mostly directed at Hiei,) escaped from her mouth. The nurses were sponging their foreheads, and in the next room Bebi-Kiraa was washing his hands in preparation for the double delivery.

A doctor burst through the door, carrying two syringes with ridiculously long needles. He went to Keiko's side.

"What do you plan on doing with _that_?" asked Yusuke, his face still showing pain, but an odd look was taking over.

"I'm going to inject it into your wife's spine." said the doctor simply as the nurses turned Keiko over.

"What?!"

"You heard me. It's an epidural." he pressed the plunger on the syringe to get the air bubbles out, then bending over, making to inject it.

"Um, maybe that's not such a good-"

"Yusuke, shut up!" screamed Keiko, wincing as the needle went in, then relaxing. "My God, that stuff really works."

The doctor then went to Botan, and after a similar fight with Hiei injected it after Botan yelled at him to mind his own business. No matter how much he wanted to say his mate's business was his own, he restrained himself.

Bebi-Kiraa entered the room, looking around. "Nurse, who's further along?" he asked, looking to each of the women.

One of the nurses looked up from her charts. "Sir…they're exactly the same. This is the most bizarre double delivery I've ever seen."

"Okay then, Botan comes before Keiko in alphabetical order, so here goes!" he whistled cheerfully as he walked over to Botan. "Are you experiencing any pain?"

"Yes, you retard! I'm only _in labor!_" yelled Botan, trying to kick him, but the iron rails of the split-bottomed bed stopped her short.

"Oh yeah, I forgot for a second-"

"GET ME A BETTER DOCTOR!"

"But-"

"NOW!"

"You're hurting my feelings!" cried the doctor, burying his face in his hands.

"Get this thing out of me or get me a doctor who will!"

"Doctor, you've been in school for twelve years training for this moment," remarked one of the nurses encouragingly, "you can do it."

Bebi-Kiraa perked up as Botan screamed in pain. "You're right! Let's go. Ms. Botan, give me a big push. You too, Ms. Urameshi!"

Both women pushed, Botan grabbing Hiei's hand. Unfortunately, she grabbed the hand with the Kokuryu Ha tattoo on it.

One of the nurses exclaimed, "I see the head!" and promptly fainted. Keiko turned her head toward Yusuke and screamed, "This is all your fault you perverted love machine!"

Yusuke smiled dreamily. "Oh, what a night."

"YOU PERVERT!" she yelled, squeezing his hand tighter.

A tear came from Yusuke's eye. Keiko laughed in spite of herself. One of the other nurses took a picture, saying, "Look at the father, he's so happy, he's crying tears of irrepressible joy!" Yusuke's face was contorted in extreme pain.

Poor Hiei was writhing, his hand held by Botan's surprisingly strong hands. "Keiko's right! This is all your faults!" she squeezed even harder as Kiraa yelled, "One more push!"

The nurse watching Botan fainted now, whispering, "Oh my good god."

"Is everyone going to faint?!" exclaimed Keiko angrily. "What kind of staff do you have here?!"

"A highly professional one, Mrs. Urameshi. In fact, our death rates during labor are down to 50 to 100 a year!" remarked the nurse.

"Oh, dear God."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The delivery went on like this for the next two hours. It was always 'one more push,' but, as Botan remarked more than once, 'one more push' was often supposed to be ten pushes ago.

But then, it happened. Two cries sounded throughout the delivery room, and the nurses (The ones who hadn't passed out,) rushed to get the babies to two little tables where a gel-thing was rubbed over their eyes and they were given a shot.

"Here you are, Mrs. Urameshi." said the nurse gently as she placed hers and Yusuke's new baby into her arms. Taking the other baby from Bebi-Kiraa, she approached Hiei and Botan and put their new daughter into Botan's warm embrace, saying the same only with 'Ms. Botan.'

"Oh…" murmured Botan lovingly, gently stroking her new baby's jet-black hair. Her daughter's cries died away quickly as she nuzzled up against her mother, soon falling asleep. Keiko's baby did the same. "We need a name." she muttered, large violet eyes looking to her mate. He was smiling. _Really_ smiling, not like he did when he was making fun of someone or had just killed a particularly annoying person. He was happy.

"So do we." admitted Keiko from across the room. "The one thing I didn't plan…I thought it would come to me, you know?" she looked to Yusuke. "Oh yeah...you know all the things I said a while ago...like that you're a bloodsucking bastard who needs to burn in Hell and be eaten alive by a horde of perverted cannibals...I didn't mean any of that...you know?"

"I guess you're forgiven, although I think my hand is broken..."

"Yeah." replied Botan, looking to Keiko and Yusuke's new baby boy. He was a round baby, with cute little brown curls and big eyes.

"You know, he's kinda fat…" commented Yusuke with a sniff. "He certainly didn't get that from _me_."

"Are you suggesting…"

"Not at all, you're skinny as a board. A real stick figure…hehheh." The last thing Yusuke wanted to do was get slapped by his obviously exhausted wife. She was testy when she was tired.

"Akina." suggested Botan gently. "'Spring flower.'"

"Perfect, but you realize it's almost summer, right?" Hiei raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, I know. And I don't care." (I forget when summer officially starts, so let's just pretend it's almost summer…)

"I'm thinking 'Kisho,' for this little man." said Keiko to Yusuke, looking up to him.

"'One who knows his mind?' I had no idea our kid was going to be _born_ a square."

"Yusuke…" she growled. He shut up.

Back on the other side of the room, Hiei was gazing silently at his mate's face. She still had little beads of sweat on her forehead from the delivery, and her bangs were held back by the surgical cap the nurse had put on her, so only a few strands of powder blue could be seen poking out from under the elastic. She looked tired and worn, but her eyes were filled with so much emotion, love, happiness, bliss, contentment, compassion….he couldn't even pick out the others. He smiled a tiny bit wider.

"I love you." he murmured softly, putting an arm around her back and the other beneath her arms, which she was obviously using to hold the baby. Squeezing softly, he closed his eyes.

Botan held her baby closer to her body. "You've never said that before. At least not outright."

"Well I do."

"I love you, too."

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There ya go! I thought that little moment at the end was cute. Um…the faster the reviews flood in the faster chapter 7 goes up…so…REVIEW PLEASE! (Yes I know the doctors sort of disappeared, but most of the time they either busy themselves with doctorly things or leave for a few minutes to give the new families some privacy if mother and child are healthy. They'll be back next chapter. (Also, I need some feedback. Should I make a sequel with their kids?)


	7. Homecoming, Part One of Two

Disclaimer: (shoots evil lawyer bunnies) DIE! HA! YOU CAN'T SUE ME! YOU KNOW WHY? BECAUSE _I DON'T OWN YYH! _MUAHAHAHA! YOU HAVE NO EVIDENCE OF COPYRIGHT VIOLATION NOW! (Evil lawyer bunnies scurry off, heads hung.)

Authoress Note: This chapter was _sorta_ co-written by Hisan Kage, who is sitting next to me right now. Not really sure how much she's going to participate in the co-written-ness. (Oh, and thanks go to Hisan Kage for the idea of this chappie!) (Clearly, she helps me a lot…)

Chapter Seven

Homecoming, Part One of Two

In the 48 hours that the new 'happy' families were in the hospital, Kurama and Shizuru planned out a "Welcome Home/Welcome…Here" party to celebrate their coming-home.

It took every waking moment to set things up. Shizuru had wanted to rent a bar but couldn't manage it on such short notice. (Well, there was this little pub in the bad part of town, but there was also a back-alley abortionist working behind it, so she passed it up. Also, Kurama politely pointed out that a bar wasn't a very good place for two newborns.) So, they arranged the party to be at Genkai's temple. They invited all of the Tantei and assistants, including Ayame and Koenma. (Koenma wasn't too happy about the whole Hiei-Botan thing, but he agreed to come when he found out the booze was free.)

And so, the day Akina, Kisho, Botan, and Keiko were supposed to be picked up, Kurama showed up in his mother's mini-van and whisked them and their rather surprised husbands/fathers to the temple for the, ahem, _glorious_ celebration.

Kurama went through the door first, forgetting that he was supposed to let the new families go first, and everyone at the party minus Koenma jumped out and yelled: "SURPRISE, WELCOME HOME/HERE!" as though it had been perfectly rehearsed, when Kurama was the only one in the doorway. (The others were still trying to figure out how to get their kids out of the car-seats. Those things are _tricky!_)

"Aw, it's just _Kurama!"_ moaned someone in the audience. Everyone anime-fell and Kurama sweat-dropped.

"Sorry!" exclaimed Kurama nervously. The crowd was advancing and looking quite murderous.

"All that practicing!" yelled someone. "For nothing!"

"Not for nothing, here they come now!" Kurama sounded just a tad desperate.

"He lies! He's a witch! Lynch 'im! Lynch 'im!" someone in the crowd jeered. (Their accent was Irish.) Obediently, the rest of the crowd of ogres, random Reikai personnel, and other friends the Tantei had come across over the years jumped on top of him, pulling his hair and scratching and biting and any other dirty fighting technique you can think of.

Then the door swung open again, and Hiei, Botan, Keiko, and Yusuke walked in with odd looks on their faces. Even the babies seemed to be looking at the pile of people with a, "This is my _family?_" look. Keiko covered Kisho's eyes.

Everyone looked up, and Kurama managed to pry someone's fingers out of his hair and free himself, crawling away unnoticed.

"W-welcome h-home/Welcome h-here!" muttered the crowd, embarrassed. They all stood up and brushed themselves off.

Shizuru stepped forward (She'd been standing by the wall, watching the riot beat up Kurama. What a nice co-host, eh?)

"Sorry about that…I guess a crowd half-filled with demons and ugly little blue men isn't the best of crowds for a party with children under ten. But hey, when it really gets down to it, you guys don't have many friends who know who you really are." she said with a small smile, lighting up a cigarette.

"I am NOT ugly!" protested an ogre who just happened to be walking by. Shizuru whapped him upside the head as Keiko eyed Shizuru's mouth oddly, covering Kisho's nose.

"No smoking around my baby!" she scolded. Shizuru looked mildly perturbed as Keiko stormed off, pulling Yusuke by the ear. Kisho was laughing at his dear father's predicament.

Shizuru turned to Botan, Hiei, and Akina, who were standing there with blank looks on their faces. "Are you non-smoking fanatic-people too?" she inquired, sounding just a little amused.

"Not at all." said Botan with a small smile. "But I need something to drink. Be back in a minute." She turned and left, and Hiei followed her without a word.

* * *

Hours later, the party was actually going. After much convincing, Shizuru had agreed to bartend at the rented some-assembly-required bar, and almost everyone was somewhat tipsy.

Jin and Touya had been dragged in somehow, maybe because Kurama had promised the SDF free drinks if they opened up a portal to Makai sohe could round up the more colorful part of their party crowd. (Kurama also neglected to mention that drinks were free anyway.)

At one end of the bar, Yusuke and Jin were engaged in a drinking battle to the death, encouraged by cheers of, "Chug, chug!" from the ogres. Touya and Yukina had disappeared somewhere, much to the dismay of Kuwabara. Hiei, who eventually found out fromthe devastated Kuwabara, didn't really seem to care all that much, surprisingly.

Keiko shut herself off in a corner with Kisho, muttering something about rowdy parties and Yusuke being an alcoholic. Kuwabara was desperately trying to find out where Touya had taken Yukina, convinced that he was going to rape, kill, or maim her despite Shizuru and Kurama's assurances that she would be just fine. Koenma sulked around in the corner opposite Keiko, Ayame trying to get him to dance with her. (J-Pop was blaring out of the rented speakers. And a few of the Reikai personnel were finding partners and dancing.)

Hiei and Botan were sitting at the bar with Akina, obviously they weren't going to be at all overprotective considering Akina got her first taste of rum to help her sleep. Genkai eventually went over to coach Yusuke. Kurama's folly earlier in the night was soon forgotten and he and Shizuru (Who made an ogre bartend in her absence) went out for a walk in the woods later in the night. Now, let's just devote a little section to everyone that matters, shall we?

* * *

****

Drinking is bad for you…

Yusuke and Jin's eyes were locked. The drinks were poured. The scene was set.

"Okay boys," stated the referee, an ogre who had magically appeared in a ref uniform, "I want a nice, clean fight, all right? Ready? CHUG!"

Yusuke and Jin didn't need to be told twice, the bottoms of their mugs went up and their Adam's apples were bobbing up and down almost too fast to see. The crowd around them jeered together and in a rhythm, "Chug, chug!" and Genkai yelled words of…erm…_encouragement_ to her former student.

"You call that chugging, dimwit!" the old woman shouted in Yusuke's ear. "You're losing! Pick up the pace! C'mon, this is pathetic!"

"Mmmm mmmm mm MMMMM, mm MMM!" (translation: I'm doing my BEST, old HAG!)

"Talking wastes air, dimwit! Chug, c'mon!"

All of a sudden, Yusuke and Genkai were covered in beer, staring blankly at Jin and blinking in unison. Jin was laughing his head off, and had dropped his mug. He was laughing hysterically at the other two.

* * *

****

Moonlit walks make Kuwa paranoid…

"How could you let her go with _him!"_ wailed Kuwabara pathetically, sinking to his knees and whimpering in despair. "That guy tried to _kill _you,Kurama! What if he pulls her off the path and then beats her, then rapes her, then rapes her again, then cuts off her face and buries her in the flow-eerrrrs!"

"Kuwabara, half the people we hang out with have tried to kill each other at one time or another," Kurama pointed out. "Take…oh, say Hiei for example. He _stabbed_ me once. And tried to kill me in front of my ex. Actually," he added thoughtfully, "he was trying to kill _Yusuke _when he stabbed me…"

"OH MY GOD!" Kuwabara screamed. "I MUST NEVER LET HIM NEAR MY DEAR YUKINA AGAIN!"

Kurama sweat-dropped. "Erm…Sure," he said, unsure of what else to say. "Well, I'm going on a walk with Shizuru, seeya."

"WHAT?" Kuwabara screamed. "How could you try to form a romance with your friend's _sister?"_

Hiei, who had been walking past them at the time, gave a loud, fake cough that sounded like: _"Hypocrite."_

Shizuru walked out onto the porch, grabbing the hand that Kurama offered her. "Bye, little brother." she said smugly. "Maybe next year you'll meet some blind girl and actually start a relationship. No need to be jealous." she and Kurama laughed as they walked off, Kurama producing a bouquet of roses from no where as they walked toward the gardens.

"Nooooooooooo!" Kuwabara wailed, sinking down to his knees. "How could MYYukina have gone with _him?"_

Coincidentally, Hiei had been walking _back _through at that exact moment. "Go _where _with _who?" _he demanded.

"Outside with Touya."

Hiei looked thoughtful, then shrugged. "At least it's not you," and with that, he walked off.

**_

* * *

It takes two to tango_**

"Oh, please Koenma-sama!" said Ayame desperately. "Just one dance? Come on! You can't just sit there and sulk the whole time!"

"No, Ayame. Leave me alone." muttered Koenma dismally, a slight hint of annoyance in his voice.

"Please? You know I'm not going to let you alone 'till I get what I want!"

"Ayame, I order you to-"

She cut him off, reaching into her pocket. "I was really hoping I wouldn't have to use these…" she said softly. "Are you _absolutely sure_ you don't want to dance?"

"Yes. Now, I order you to-" his eyes widened and the pacifier almost dropped out of his mouth. _"Where did you get those!"_

Ayame smiled evilly, something she didn't get to do all that often. "I nicked them from your father. He has the ogres make albums, but you know he never looks at them." she held up a few pictures of Koenma being toilet-trained. He was sitting down on a multi-colored plastic training-potty, reading an upside-down book.

"And look, Lord Koenma! It's your favorite book! Everybody Poops, by Taro Gomi." (A/N:I don't own that book, but it does exist!) "Now, will you dance with me?"

"No! What do I care if you show those!" sniffed Koenma. Ayame shook her head.

"Then I'll have to show them…THESE!" she held up two more pictures, of Koenma learning how to pee. "Look how cute, you were so _little_ back then!"

"NO!" screamed Koenma, lunging for the photos. Ayame tucked them back into her pocket.

"So will you dance?"

"Yes. I guess." grumbled Koenma. She squealed with delight, something else she didn't get to do that often, and led him out onto the dance floor. Avoiding the break-dancing ogres, they danced for one song, but as she tried to pull away from him, he pulled her back and said softly, "One more song."

* * *

****

Who forgot to give her her happy pills?

Keiko, sitting off in a corner in her own world, was rocking back and forth, stroking Kisho all Golem-esque.

"Alcoholic freaks…all have black lungs…my baby…never…stupid, drunken Yusuke…why did I marry…only you understand, and you can't talk….so dumb…I want go home…."

As his mother was sitting there, rocking back and forth ranting to herself, Kisho was getting bored. Already getting pretty clever because of his blood, he noticed a beer bottle laying nearby on the floor. Being not much bigger than a beer bottle himself, be figured that it would do.

He reached out as far as he could, taking hold of the bottle and gently slipping it into his mother's hands. She never noticed, because her left eye was twitching uncontrollably and her right was fixed on Yusuke's drinking battle. Kisho crawled over to his dad. She never even saw him go.

"Hey, little man!" Called Yusuke, bending over to pick up his son after finishing another drinking battle. Surprisingly, he wasn't drunk yet. "How'd you get over here?"

Kisho simply stuck his thumb in his mouth and pointed to his mom, who was stroking the beer bottle in Kisho's absence.

"Oh! Good job, little buddy!" Yusuke patted Kisho on the back and sat him up on the bar.

"You married a crazy one, didn't you?" commented Jin as he poured the next round.

* * *

****

Who says; "Don't give alcohol to babies"?

A crowd had gathered around Hiei, Botan and Akina. The little baby was setting fire to various objects with relative ease, while Hiei encouraged her.

"Hiei, sooner or later you'll be telling her to burn down our place!" Botan said jokingly. Then she glanced at the clock. "Oh, my! Is it that late already?" Sure enough, it was past midnight. "We've gotta get you to sleep," she said, picking up Akina.

"Aye, lassie, just give the lass a lit'le rum and she'll fall righ' a'leep," said a tipsy Irish ogre. Botan glanced at Hiei, who shrugged and walked off, in a way that said: 'You decide. I'm off.' Botan looked at Akina and said;

"Well, I guess a little wouldn't hurt…" Akina grinned and clapped her hands.

Soon, after five minutes and one thimbleful of rum, Akina was sleeping soundly in Botan's arms. Hiei returned, looking satisfied.

"What's going on?" asked Botan.

"I don't have to kill Kuwabara anymore," answered Hiei. "Of course, I probably will anyway." Botan rolled her eyes and looked down at her baby's sleeping face.

"Kill, kill…" murmured Akina softly in her sleep.

Hiei's eyes filled with pride. "Her first words, I'm so proud!" he said with mock enthusiasm.

Botan looked shocked. "What! Hiei, what have you been _teaching _her?"

**FLASHBACK HIEI…**

Botan had wandered out of the hospital room long enough for Hiei to try and teach his daughter some new vocab.

He held up a flashcard with a picture of himself killing Kuwabara on it. "Okay, Akina, '_kill.' _Can you say 'kill'?"

**END FLASHBACK**

"Nothing…she's just smart, I guess…."

* * *

All too soon, it was time for everyone to go home. At 2:15, the party was cut short because Genkai wanted everybody out of her house so she could sleep. (An old woman like her needs as much beauty rest as possible, you know.)

Kurama and Shizuru said goodbye to everyone at the door, fulfilling their duty as co-hosts of the party. It took about a half hour, but finally all of the guests were gone, leaving Shizuru and Kurama all alone.

Well, pretty much. Jin and Touya were paying Genkai for rooms so they could spend the night, and Yukina and Genkai herself were there, obviously, but they were the only ones in the main room.

Music was still playing, a conveniently slow tune. Kurama offered her a hand.

"Want to dance?" he asked, emerald eyes tinted slightly with gold, a sign he was feeling mischievous. Ignoring this, Shizuru nodded.

"Why not?"

He led her out and pulled her close, and they swayed back and forth in silence for a moment before Kurama spoke.

"It's been a while hasn't it?" he asked, looking down at her.

"Yeah. But no one knew until tonight."

"So maybe we should finalize things?" he smiled and stepped back, kneeling and pulling a small red box out of his pocket. Shizuru gasped.

"Are you…?"

"Yes. But only on one condition."

"And that is…?"

"Stop smoking."

Shizuru pulled her newest pack from her pocket and threw it behind her. He opened the box to reveal a white gold ring with a single diamond set in the middle. Simple, yet beautiful.

"I will!" She exclaimed as he fitted it easily onto her finger. He stood afterwards, sweeping her off her feet and twirling her around a few times before carrying her out the door and off into the night.

* * *

A littlerandom Kurama/Shizuru moment at the end, gotta add that to the summary. Anyway, I know that was long, but review please. Part two is coming soon! 


	8. Wedding Blues

Disclaimer: I don't own YYH. Haven't I said that enough times? Oh well. This is the last chapter, anyway.

Authoress Note: Yes, those of you who bothered to read the authoress note read correctly. This is the last chapter of Years Go By. You may weep and mourn now! But, cry not, for I have decided to write a sequel to this! And guess what else? I'm taking a poll from the reviewers! In your review, please vote on how old you think Akina and Kisho should be. The possible time periods to vote on are preschool, middle school, or high school. So, if you wanted the sequel, then vote! I need your opinions, due to my own indecisiveness.

This chapter is dedicated to Hisan Kage, who just got home from Europe. She provided me with about half of the ideas for this chapter, thus inspiring me to write more. I hope you all enjoy, and welcome home, Kage!

* * *

Chapter Nine

Wedding Blues

__

Three Years Later

It was finally the day of the wedding, three years after the actual proposal. Why did it take so long for Kurama and Shizuru to tie the knot? It had taken two and a half years for Shizuru to quit smoking for good, and another six months to plan the wedding. (Not to mention the fact that the bride and groom had been waiting for the ring bearer and flower girl to grow up enough to fulfill their duties.)

But finally everything was set, perfectly planned. No doubt it would have gone off without a hitch, had Shizuru not forgotten the veil in her hotel room before she left.

Later on, it was agreed that the forgotten veil was what had triggered the entire incident. Because the veil had been forgotten, Shizuru insisted that the wedding would have to be held off until Keiko returned with it. I mean, what kind of bride doesn't have a veil?

So, Keiko headed off on a quest to go and get the veil from Shizuru's hotel room, an hour round trip allowing time for the woman to get up to the top floor using the stairs (The elevator was unfortunately broken), get into Shizuru's room, and retrieve the veil, then do the whole thing again going back.

During this hour, the anxious groom started to have second thoughts at the altar. He was standing at the raised dais at the front of the chapel with the groomsman and the grudging best man, Hiei when Botan, the maid of honor, took one of the microphones that the yet-to-be-revealed minister was going to use during the ceremony.

"Hello everyone…wait…lemme turn this thing on…oh, look at that! It _is_ on! Okay! Well, on to business. The ceremony is being postponed by an hour due to our beloved, forgetful bride! Please wait patiently in your pews for the ceremony to begin. Thanks!"

Kurama, who had already been incredibly flustered, looked as though he might cry. He turned back to his four groomsmen for advice.

"You guys, I don't know if I can go through with this!" Kurama exclaimed in a hushed voice.

"Then don't." Hiei said flatly. "The sooner you run off, the sooner _I_ get out of this annoying tux."

"Hiei!" Yusuke, Kaito, and Kurama's stepbrother said in scolding tones.

"C'mon, Kurama! You're the infamous Yoko Kurama! You've faced much more terrible things than _marriage!_" Yusuke said in an invigorated voice.

"Yoko…Kurama?" Kurama's stepbrother said in a confused tone.

"Nothing…video game character…y'know, from younger days…" Yusuke said airily, waving the question off nonchalantly.

"You're certainly one to talk, Yusuke." Kurama hissed. "Everyone knows you postponed your own wedding by three days because you ran off with cold feet!"

"So…?" Yusuke said in a defeated tone. "Keiko is scarier than Shizuru!"

"Try living with her!" Kurama retorted. "Shizuru can be a freaking slave driver!"

"Shuichi, I thought you were in love with Shizuru." Kurama's stepbrother said.

"Yeah, and I love her still! But Botan is right! She's forgetful and violent! What if…what if we have kids and she forgets to feed them or something!"

"At least she's _smart!_ I'm mated to the world's biggest bubblehead!" Hiei snorted.

"Do _any_ of you people like your wives?" The stepbrother asked, just as Kaito interjected,

"At least you guys can _get_ women!"

"Nonsense, Kaito!" Yusuke said brightly laying a hand on Kaito's shoulder. "I saw a nice-looking young lady hitting on you at the bachelor party!"

"That was a man in _drag!_" Kaito whined.

"Oh…"

At this time, Botan approached the mic again.

"Hello again." the crowd shared a collective groan. "Well, one of our bridesmaids Keiko returned with the veil! So in a few moments, the wedding will finally begin!" The crowd cheered, but amidst the cheers, Keiko came up to Botan and whispered something into her ear. Botan's face fell and she put the microphone back up to her mouth, waiting for the din of the crowd to die down. "Well, people, I'm sorry to say that although Keiko _did_ return with a veil…it was the wrong one." Once more, the crowd groaned. "But we'll have the real one back here in an hour or so!" The crowd groaned and some people threw their hands into the air. A few guests rose to leave. Feeling pressured to do _something_ to save the wedding, she said hurriedly, "But in the meantime, entertainment from myself and the groom along with the groomsmen! Aren't you all so excited?"

The crowd cheered, and Botan went over to the guys and pulled them to center stage. "Work with me, guys!" She hissed, and then she started to make up a random, humorous song about a groom with cold feet. Kurama promptly passed out to a roar of approval from the crowd, who thought it was an act.

* * *

One hour later, the groom had been revived, and the correct veil had been retrieved. Botan went up to the mic once more and announced that the wedding would begin in ten minutes. The crowd rejoiced merrily.

And then, ten minutes later, the organ player started up the famous wedding tune, "Here Comes the Bride." But, the old man who had been playing the song only made it past the first few measures. Since the wedding had been postponed for a little over two hours, the old codger was becoming a little tired. So, in the middle of the first phrase of the song, the old organ player passed out. The effect was a little like this. (You know the tune!)

"Naa na na naaaa…naa na na naaaa….naa na na na na na naaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa…….."

That's right. The old man fell right onto the keyboard, elongating the note he had passed out on for WAY longer than necessary. The first few people to come down the aisle up to the altar stopped in their tracks, staring at the organ with disturbed expressions until some kindly guest removed the old man from the keyboard and laid him down on the long organ bench. After that, the procession continued along to the wonderful sounds of silence, until one of the other guests struck up a few people to hum the tune in the absence of the organ.

First up the aisle was the maid of honor and best man, Hiei and Botan, walking up with linked arms to the head of the line where the other groomsmen and bridesmaids would so line up.

"Kaito told me about your nasty comments about me earlier," Botan hissed through her clenched, smiling teeth. "I'm not too happy about that. And you know what else? Akina told me that she was going to rip out 'my precious voice-box' this morning. I _told_ you, no more death threat lessons until she turns five!"

"Later, Botan! Now is not the time!"

"Of course now is the time, Hiei! We're in a church! Wait, how did you get in here? I though bloodsucking leeches like you had to be _invited_ inside!"

"Hn." he said as they separated, heading up the steps at opposite sides of the dais, stopping at opposite sides of the altar, facing the crowd. Next came Keiko and Yusuke, having a similar argument.

"Kaito said that you're scared of me. Why is that? I thought you married me for love, not fear!" Keiko whispered, looking around the chapel and pretending not to be talking to her husband.

"Of course I married you for love, honey! But certainly not for the kind of love we have at night…yep, that's right…" He looked around the chapel with shifty eyes. Keiko resisted the urge to slap him.

"Yusuke, cuddle-bug." she said in a sickeningly sweet voice. "You're in luck, then. Because we won't be making that kind of love for a loong time."

As the two separated to go up the opposite sets of stairs, Yusuke whimpered.

Next was Kurama's stepbrother and Yukina, and then the extra groomsman, Kaito, walked down the aisle alone. Then was the ring bearer, bearing an empty pillow. No one bothered to question this out loud, but plenty of people were left wondering what was up.

And then, finally, the guests stood up and looked toward the doors since they knew that the end of the procession was near. Akina emerged from the double doors pompously, throwing deep red rose petals in the guest's faces as she toddled down the aisle in a light blue dress.

"Hey!" one particular guest made the mistake of protesting. "Stop it!"

Akina, who had been the absolute picture of innocence aside from her violent flower throwing, stopped halfway down the aisle and grabbed the protester's necktie, pulling him down to her height.

"Listen to Akina, mister!" she hissed at him, jabbing a finger in his face. "Talk to me again and I rip out your precious voice-box!"

The man raised his hands in a gesture that clearly said, "All right, all right," and then she released his tie, continuing down the aisle flinging flower petals in people's faces. Botan lowered her head into her hands and muttered something along the lines of "WHY am I letting him corrupt my sweet, innocent flower!" Hiei appeared smug and proud. Well, he did until the doors opened for the final time and Shizuru and Kuwabara stood in the doorway. The two stepped out, Shizuru's veil doing a poor job of masking her red face. Kuwabara looked as though he might cry.

Now, the two were halfway down the aisle, and Kuwabara was about to break down and cry right then and there. But then, when the two were almost in the clear, at the time when everyone thought that the rest of the wedding was going to work out fine…

Kuwabara realized he'd forgotten to put on a belt that morning, and down went his tux pants, revealing his tighty-wighties to the entire world.

Everyone in the chapel shielded their eyes as the red-faced Kuwabara quickly tried to pull up his pants before anyone noticed. Unfortunately for him, not a soul in the entire place hadn't seen.

Yusuke, thoroughly disgusted, leaned over to Hiei who was masterfully trying to cover all three eyes, even though he was wearing his normal bandanna. "I thought we answered the 'boxers or briefs' question a loong time ago…"

"Apparently not." Kaito put in, still looking away even though Kuwabara had managed to pull his pants back up and give the bride, Shizuru, away to Kurama.

Just as Kurama was about to go and help his wife-to-be up the steps, however, Hiei decided to whisper frantically in the groom's ear: "Ohmigod, Kurama," in an overly dramatic manner. Kurama gulped and went down to take his fiancée's hand.

And, at that time, the doors behind the altar dramatically burst open, revealing the Mystery Minister to the entire congregation. It was…

"GENKAI!" the entire Reikai Tantei who was present exclaimed, even though they were trying to maintain some type of formality to the haphazard wedding.

"Yes, kids, it's old grandma with a fresh kick in the nuts for you all." she smiled evilly.

Kurama gaped open-mouthed at the old woman as she stepped up onto the stack of books that had been placed behind the altar, making herself tall enough to see over the wooden thing.

"Before we begin," the old woman began, "I have a message from a very important guest who couldn't make it today because they had an appointment with their therapist. His name is Koenma, and he thinks, for some reason, that he is prince of the 'Spirit World.' What a load of crap!" the crowd collectively agreed. "But, no matter how crazy he gets, people just consider him 'eccentric' because of his ridiculous wealth. And so, I now present the bride and groom with Koenma's gift!" she turned around and pointed upward. Down came a ridiculously large poster of baby-form Koenma with one foot on the ogre and his right hand in a 'V-for-Victory' position. The crowd sweatdropped, and Kurama was so embarrassed he felt lightheaded.

"Now that that's taken care of, on to business." Genkai said briskly, sorting through her papers and finding the correct one. "Here we go. Now, we are gathered here today…blahdee blahdee blah….what a load of crap this is, eh?" The crowd agreed again. "Anyway, let's just skip to the vows. Now, the couples wrote their own this time around, so we'll just turn the mic over to them, won't we?" The crowd nodded intelligently.

Kurama was supposed to go first, but when he asked Kisho for the ring, the little boy smiled evilly and reached up his nose, pulling out ring number one. The crowd made disgusted noises.

"That's m'boy!" Yusuke said proudly, elbowing Kurama's stepbrother and pointing.

"Ow…" murmured the stepbrother-whose-name-is-not-important.

Kurama pulled some antibacterial spray from his pocket and sprayed the ring, taking it delicately into his hand. "Okay then…" he stammered, holding out the ring for Shizuru. She grudgingly held out her hand, though her expression clearly said she didn't want that germ farm on her finger. Kurama then realized that he had forgotten his vows.

Prepared for anything, he pulled a yellow post-it note from his pocket and cleared his throat, sweating profusely.

"Um…I-I love you, Suzie…I mean Shinoka…or Shizuka…or…."

"Shizuru," whispered Hiei helpfully.

"Shizuru! That's it! And…and I want to spend the rest of my….l-life or lives, depending on circumstances…with you. And…yeah. Just, can we get this over with before I--"

At that moment, Kurama passed out.

* * *

After Kurama was revived (again), the family of the couple decided it was for the best if the ceremony was finished elsewhere and the guests were just sent to the outdoor bar for a while before the reception. After the five-minute condensed ceremony, the triumphant couple emerged from the empty chapel with smiling faces, Kurama carrying the bride, you guessed it, bridal style.

The crowd cheered, and for a moment, everything seemed like it would be okay. Hint the: 'for a moment,' because right after that moment, Kurama tripped on the stairs and started to fall over. In an act of desperation, he most unceremoniously threw the bride into the air in an attempt to save her from crashing into the cement. Yusuke, trying to impress Keiko with his gentlemanly ways, hurried forward to catch Shizuru. But everyone in the crowd was too busy watching the bride come back down after being chucked twenty feet in the air to remember the unfortunate bridegroom as he crashed into the cement. Only after Yusuke had caught the bride and put her back on her feet did anyone remember that Kurama was lying facedown in a marked-off area with a sign that read, "WET CEMENT."

* * *

Once the groom was pried from the wet cement sidewalk and all of the dried ships of cement had been removed from his face, the guests were herded into the reception hall for the complimentary wedding dinner.

Once more, it seemed like everything would end up turning out just fine. The caterers managed to get the food all out on the tables with no problem, all of the guests liked the food, and the chocolate fountain that Shizuru had ordered for the dessert table was a complete hit. Everyone was having a good time, and up at the head table the bride and groom were glowing with happiness. (Kurama's second thoughts had been banished once the crowd was gone. Whoda thunk that Kurama had stage fright?)

The best man and maid of honor speeches went surprisingly well, too. Even the flower girl and ring bearer were subdued by dinner long enough for everyone else to enjoy it, and the families in attendance all seemed to be getting along famously. For the first time all day, something was going right.

Well, it seemed that way, at least.

After all of the 'everything-is-going-right' stuff, the mystery DJ that Yusuke had hired for Kurama and Shizuru got up into his all-powerful DJ booth and started to play some music for the guests. After a few songs for kicks, he picked up the mic and cleared his throat. The crowd fell silent.

"All right everyone, it's that time again. It's time for the newly wedded couple's first dance." he said. His voice was strangely familiar, but neither Kurama nor Shizuru could place it.

"This is a very special song that Shuichi picked out just for Shizuru. So, come on you two, it's time for your dance!"

Kurama stood and offered his hand to Shizuru, who took it with a smile. The two headed for the dance floor and waited for the music to start. When it did, neither one of them moved. They didn't recognize the music until the first few words echoed through the reception hall.

"I like big BUTTS and I cannot lie! You otha bruthas can't deny! And when a girl walks in wit a iddy-bitty waist, and a round thing in yo' face you get SPRUNG!" The crowd murmured oddly, wondering what the meaning of the whole thing was. Shizuru and Kurama turned beet red and stalked over to the DJ booth. Kurama threw open the door and looked inside, and there, lo and behold, was Chu, Touya, and Jin. All three of them were wearing enormous grins as they laughed hysterically.

"Turn that OFF!" The couple screamed angrily, and Chu obliged, laughing uncontrollably. Jin and Touya managed to sneak out of the back door of the booth, leaving Chu to suffer the wrath of the married couple.

Ten minutes and one very bloody Chu later, the couple emerged from the DJ booth with triumphant smiles. The so-called DJ Chu was replaced by one of the guests, and the reception went on as planned.

Until the ring bearer and flower girl got bored with the dancing.

The two little ones, so small that they often went unnoticed, were intrigued by the chocolate fountain. And who could blame them? It's not every day you see a shiny, flowing mass of chocolate.

Akina, ever the smart one, showed Kisho how to get up on the display table to get a closer look at the fountain. The two toddlers heaved themselves up and got behind it, hoping no one had noticed them.

"We push it!" Akina cackled evilly.

"I dunno…" Kisho said uncertainly.

"Sissy! Push!" Akina demanded. Shrugging, Kisho obliged. They stuck their hands into the curtain of chocolate covering the base of the fountain and pushed when they found the hard plastic rod supporting it. The whole thing toppled over, leaving the toddlers exposed and giggling uncontrollably.

Unfortunately, the chocolate-covered Shiori was not as amused.

* * *

After Kurama's mother was escorted to the hospital, the other guests tried to keep the mood light toward the end of the failed wedding/reception. To make a long story short, most of the guests left after the failed 110 yen dance, but the rest left after the bride almost choked to death on the wedding cake.

Once all the people were gone except the bride, groom, and clean-up crew, Kurama plopped himself down into a chair and held his head in his hands. Shizuru, still wearing her wedding dress, laid a hand on his shoulder.

"What's the matter?" she asked him in a consoling tone.

"Today was an absolute failure." he said wearily. She sat down next to him.

"No it wasn't," she replied. "I had the absolute best time of my life!"

"You're lying."

"No, I'm not. Not every girl gets a wedding as fun as that. Hell, I even got to _fly_ today. You sure threw me high enough when you tripped."

Kurama looked up smiling. "You mean that?"

"Yes, I do, koi. Now, let's get home. We're still packing for the honeymoon, you know."

Kurama stood and so did she, but as soon as she was upright he picked her up gracefully and spun her around bridal-style, kissing her lightly. After that, he carried her outside and to the car, gazing at her fondly the entire time. He was so lost in her eyes, in fact, that he didn't even notice when he stepped right in the wet cement again.

**__**

Fin.

* * *

Another KuramaShizuru moment at the end. That chapter was fun to write but I don't think it was very good. Please review with your thoughts, and since this is the end, please tell me your favorite quote or part of the story as a whole. Ja! More stories to come! (Oh and remember to vote on the sequel!) 


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